I expect a big discrepancy between GAAP and pro forma, for QCOM, only in this Post-Bubble phase, which I expect to end sometime in 2002.
The only possible future pro-forma item, in my opinion, is NetZero. That's a $144m item. Otherwise, the pro-forma business is over for good. But the moaning and groaning about it is definitely not.
If GAAP is used to account for earnings, and a loss is sustained, then the EPS growth after the charges are over is, from a percentage standpoint, huge.
How do you like them apples?
I like 'em a lot.
Lies, damn lies, and statistics.
The bottom line is that the bulk of the write-offs are over and we'll start to see the true nature of the beast, which I think is phenomenally profitable.
There is a place for pro-forma, because it validly eliminates the non-recurring and the extraordinary in order to give a picture of how things are absent the unusual items. |
